Dancer

South African dancer Ashley Dean is a First Artist of The Royal Ballet. She trained at English National Ballet School and graduated into The Royal Ballet’s Aud Jebsen Young Dancers Programme in 2014, entering the Company in 2015 and promoted to First Artist in 2019.

Dean started dancing at the age of five and trained at Cape Junior Ballet Company before joining English National Ballet School in 2011. Awards while a student included bronze medal at the 2011 Genée International Ballet Competition and the Royal Academy of Dance’s Solo Seal Award in 2013. While a student she performed with English National Ballet as Flower (Le Corsaire) and Snowflake (The Nutcracker) and with The Royal Ballet on tour in Manon in Moscow and Romeo and Juliet in Taipei.

Roles since joining The Royal Ballet have included Clara (The Nutcracker), White Cat (The Sleeping Beauty), Young Girl’s Friend (The Two Pigeons), Cygnets (Swan Lake) and in the world premieres of Hofesh Shechter’s Untouchable and Crystal Pite’s Flight Pattern.